Found
by Tyretest
Summary: After months of deception and lies, Julian and Alexis find themselves alone in the Jerome Gallery. Confronting each other, their past, and their present isn't easy. A double POV piece on the first Julian/Alexis kiss from the 11-12-13 episode of GH.


_Author's Note: I admit it. I'm liking the Julian Jerome/Alexis Davis pairing. So, I'm taking a step away from my Michael Easton/Kelly Monaco focus for a change. I loved the Julian reveal scene with Alexis, so I figured a fanfic was in order._

"…if you trust me…"

Alexis's pride had her head rearing back and her mother-she-cat anger roaring up through her chest. Trust him? Was Derek, Julian, whatever the hell name he wanted to use, serious? Had he completely lost it? Had she lost it for ever having thought him to be an honest and hard-working man?

"Why would I trust YOU?" Alexis interrupted Julian's argument.

Julian's face softened as did his stance. An indefinable emotion flared to life in his eyes.

"You did once upon a time." A hint of a smile pulled at the corner of his mouth. "You looked in my eyes. You walked out of that bar and into my car." As he spoke, Julian let the irresistible pull he felt for Alexis move him closer to her.

Alexis backed away from him.

"Are you going to seduce me NOW?" she asked with sarcasm dripping from every word. Her emotions were at war. As attracted to Julian as she was, Alexis was spitting mad at both his deception and his manipulation of her, Sam, and Danny. She had no intention of letting him find any chink in her self-righteous armour.

With a lazy move, Julian reached up and slipped his hand around the back of Alexis's neck. "You tell me," he whispered before he pulled her to him and kissed her.

For the first time in his life, Julian had made a miscalculation. He had thought that he was seducing her, convincing her that he cared. Julian hadn't counted on the effect kissing her would have on him. It was like nothing he had experienced with any other woman. One simple little kiss and he finally understood what he'd been missing all these years. The kiss ripped through him and laid him bare in less than a second. Unable to stop himself, Julian let go of his iron-willed control, put his other hand up to Alexis's face, and deepened the kiss. He indulged in a small feeling of victory when Alexis not only didn't fight him but responded to his kiss. A low moan of pure male satisfaction escaped him as he enjoyed this small victory.

Alexis wasn't surprised that Julian tried to kiss her. After all, his tone and body language gave his intentions away. Her only thought through all the emotional turmoil she was experiencing was to remain passive and show him she was indifferent to Julian and his charms. That changed the moment his lips touched hers. She couldn't stop the response to him, the over-whelming bubble of happiness that her attraction to him was mutual. He reached up and trapped her face between his hands while he deepened the kiss. She was at a loss to do anything but respond. When he moaned softly and then pulled back, she was so terribly confused by her own reactions to him. He kissed her lightly one more time and then pulled back with her face framed by his strong, capable hands.

Julian paused for a moment to gather his thoughts and catch his breath. He needed Alexis to understand that this wasn't some passing fancy on his part. Despite all the lies, the deception, and the impossible position he had gotten himself into with Sonny, Alexis mattered to him. In fact, she mattered to him more than he was willing to admit to himself, much less anyone else. Without thought, he looked straight into Alexis's eyes with intensity and said the first thing that came to mind.

"I remember you," he whispered to her.

The pain he saw in Alexis's eyes at that whispered confession nearly undid him. He felt her flinch in response to his admission. Julian knew he couldn't give Alexis time to think about everything. If he did, he would lose her to the anger she held for him at this moment. Leaning forward, he kissed her quickly and whispered one last heartfelt thought to her. Thankfully, he sounded more confident than he felt.

"I'll see you soon." Having made that last statement, he turned and walked away with as much confidence and bravado as he could manage. He was shaken to his core by this encounter with Alexis, not that he would admit that to her right now.

Alexis cautiously kept looking forward, refusing to watch Julian walk away. She had never felt so lost, confused, and alone. All the years that Helena had lied to her, tortured her, and made her life hell meant nothing compared to the hurt, betrayal, and confusion she felt right now. She had no idea how to feel or what to do.

When she heard the gallery door close softly, she could no longer hold her emotions inside. Alone in the gallery, her anguished sob was magnified by the walls of the empty building as tears began to run down her cheeks. If only her mind were as empty as the building she stood in.


End file.
